Improvement in rocking-chairs



Arnnr rrrcn.

GEORGE E. LORD, or UTICA, NEW roux.

IMPROVEMENT IN ROCKING-CHAIRS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 134,688, dated January 7 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE E. LORD, of the city of Utica, in the county of Oneida, in the State of New York, have invented a new Rocking-Chair, which improvement is applicable to cradles and other articles; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the annexed drawing and to the letters of reference thereon.

The object of my invention is to produce a rocking chair or cradle, having the same motion of the ordinary rocking chair or cradles, without having the long rockers which are commonly used, and which are objectionable as requiring a large space to stand on, and that they injure carpets and bruise other furniture when in use.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention, I will proceed to describe it.

Figure 1 represents a portion of a chairside, showing the lower or seat rail, the curved lower edge of which forms the rocker. Fig. 2 is a view of a section of the stool or legs, showing the floor or platform on which the rockers stand and rock, and to which the lower ends of the springs are attached, as described hereafter. Fig. 3 is a spiral-coil spring, used to attach to and keep the rocker properly balanced on the floor or platform of the stool or legs. Fig. 4 is a sheet-metal spring, also used to connect the rocker to the floor or platform of the stool or legs, and hold them in place in their proper relation to each other, and, at the same time, to act as a stop on the rocker to prevent it being tipped over bybeing rocked back too far. Fig. 5 represents a chair-frame constructed according to my invention, with a portion of one of the rockers and one side of the stool-frame removed in order to show the adjustment and manner of working of the different parts.

A is a stool or frame, with the floor or platform B securely attached, as shown in Fig. 2, said platform forming a level surface on which the rocker 0, formed by the lower edge of the seat-rail, as shown in Fig. 1., sits and rocks. D is a hole cut through the platform B, through which the spiral-coil spring E, shown in Fig.

3, passes, the end being securely fastened on the under side of the platform B. O is the rocker, shown in Fig. 1, formed by the curved lower edge of the side rail of the seat, which rests on the platform B, as before described. E is the spiralcoil spring, as shown in Fig. 3, one end of which is attached to the rocker O, the other end passing through the hole D in the platform B, and attached securelyon the un der side. F is the sheet-metal spring shown in Fig. 4, one end of which is fastened to the upper side of the platform B, and the other end to the bottom or lower side of the back rail to the seat-frame G. The length of this spring should be regulated by the length of the curve of the rocker and the distance it is desired to have the rocking-chair tip backward.

My invention differs from all other rockers which I have noticed in the location of the rocker and the platform on which it rocks and the motion given to the seat thereby, and in the application of the attachments for holding the rocker in position and balancing it throughout.

The chairs commonly in use that do not rock directly on the floor are made with the seat swinging on a pivot or spring attached to the stool, either parallel with or below the seat, or with rockers on legs attached by various de vices to a convex surface on which the chair sits and rocks; but none of these devices which I have seen rock directly on the edge of the seat-frame, or in rocking have the same line of motion as the ancient rocker, (in common use,) which rocks directly on the level surface of the floor or carpet, and which peculiar motionI consider desirable and claim to have retained in my invention.

By means of the level platform across the stool, forming a floor or base for the rocker, formed by the side rail of the chair-seat, to rest upon and rock, and to which the chairseat is securely attached and held in position by the springs which'I have adopted, it will be readily seen that while retaining the very desirable motion of the ancient rockingchair I do away with the long rockers on the floor.

Having thus described my invention, I do not claim as new or original the idea of a rocking-chair without extended rockers resting on the floor, nor the use of springs to keep the rocker-rail O, the spiral-coil spring E, the

chair-seat and stool in their proper position in sheet-metal spring F, together forming a rockrelation to each other; but ing-chair, substantially as and for the purpose What I do claim as new, and. pray that Letset forth.

ters Patent may be granted to me, is- GEORGE E. LORD.

The rocker formed by and rocking directly Witnesses:

on the seat-rail of the chair, in combination W. B. GODDARD,

with the stool A with the platform B, the JOHN OCONNOR. 

